From the Bookshelf of Tsundoku Reading Group…

Uprooted

Naomi Novik

Start date: July 1, 2018

Finish date: July 30, 2018

Why we're reading this: Stand Alone for July!
[close] Stand Alone for July!

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What Members Thought

Nov 09, 2020 Conor rated it it was amazing

To put a slight spin on one of my favourite football cliches this was really a book of 2 halves. The 1st was nicely written but slow and relatively uneventful with fairly 2-D and not particularly sympathetic characters. However the 2nd half of the book was compelling with 3 or 4 different sections each of which was brilliant in it's own way: mixing a tense, horror-like atmosphere with clever political intrigue and intense action. The characters became more fleshed out and complex as well, especi To put a slight spin on one of my favourite football cliches this was really a book of 2 halves. The 1st was nicely written but slow and relatively uneventful with fairly 2-D and not particularly sympathetic characters. However the 2nd half of the book was compelling with 3 or 4 different sections each of which was brilliant in it's own way: mixing a tense, horror-like atmosphere with clever political intrigue and intense action. The characters became more fleshed out and complex as well, especially Prince Marek who combined the 2 classic fantasy tropes of the brave, warrior prince and the spoiled, childish prince (shoutout Joffrey) (view spoiler).

With that said I found the romance sub-plot to be pretty weak throughout. I didn't mind that the dragon was a wanker (especially in the early parts of the book) more that he was a boring wanker, which was one of the main things that dragged down the 1st half of the book. Had he been a funny wanker (think House) or a cool wanker (Jaime in ASOIAF) the early sections would have been way better and the romance more believable.

To get back to the incredible 2nd half of the book though, it was one of the best and most varied reads I've had in a long time. From the tense, horror-filled mission into the forest, to an elegant court with deadly political intrigue (which was some of the most intelligently written political maneuvering I've read in a good while, even rivalling Joe Abercrombie's brilliant "The Trouble With Peace" which I read recently) to the incredible ending which completely changed how I viewed the main conflict of the story and gave the whole battle a tragic feeling.

Overall much like Man United proved many times in the Ferguson era, a great 2nd half can make up for a mediocre 1st and this books masterful conclusion was almost as good as that winner in the 1999 Champions League final. ...more

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Aug 03, 2015 Stephen Richter rated it liked it · review of another edition

The story started out strong and I loved the characters, then as the story progressed I began to lose interest. It might be the case of me wanting the story go one way and the book went this other violent path that seemed at odds with the promise of the first half of the book. I waited for other characters who never showed up, and characters showed up as major players, but did not have much of a backstory.

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Jun 03, 2015 Kenneth Geary (KagedBooks) rated it really liked it

I'm part of a book club now and this was the read of the month. I'd never heard of the author or book before, so i was coming in unbiased. This story is very intriguing and nicely written, I was disappointed to hear that it is a stand-alone and not a series (i'm a sucker for long series). This wouldn't have been an issue except that while it was good and I would recommend anyone to read it, you can tell some of the details were rushed (particularly in the falling actions). which is why I dropped ...more

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Jul 30, 2018 Amber rated it really liked it

I really enjoyed this novel. It had a little bit of a beauty and beast feel to it, especially early on, but the lead character developed quite nicely I thought in the latter half of the book. Setting was interesting, cool idea in the finale. Didn't love the reader, but it was bearable and grew on me with some time. I could read another installment if one ever came out. ...more

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